Release Process

Version Management

The Essencium Backend follows Semantic Versioning (SemVer) with the format MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH:

• MAJOR: Breaking API changes
• MINOR: New functionality in a backward-compatible manner
• PATCH: Backward-compatible bug fixes

Release Workflow

1. Prepare Release

• Update version in pom.xml
• Update CHANGELOG.md with release notes
• Update MIGRATION.md if breaking changes exist
• Create a release branch: release/vX.Y.Z

2. Testing

• Run full test suite: mvn clean test
• Run integration tests: mvn clean verify
• Verify Docker build: docker build .

3. Documentation

• Update API documentation
• Review and update README if needed
• Ensure all new features are documented

4. Create Release

# Tag the release
git tag -a vX.Y.Z -m "Release version X.Y.Z"
 
# Push tag
git push origin vX.Y.Z

5. Deploy to Maven Repository

mvn clean deploy

6. Post-Release

• Merge release branch to main
• Update develop branch with next snapshot version
• Announce release to team/users

Hotfix Process

For critical bugs in production:

1. Create hotfix branch from main: hotfix/vX.Y.Z+1
2. Fix the issue
3. Test thoroughly
4. Follow release process for patch version

Changelog Format

Use the following format for CHANGELOG.md:

## [X.Y.Z] - YYYY-MM-DD
 
### Added
 
- New features
 
### Changed
 
- Changes in existing functionality
 
### Deprecated
 
- Soon-to-be removed features
 
### Removed
 
- Removed features
 
### Fixed
 
- Bug fixes
 
### Security
 
- Security fixes